Liberty
by Steph7085
Summary: AU...The Captain of the Liberty, John Sheppard, and his crew are placed in a difficult situation when they are forced to work for the Imperium. It's made more difficult when John's past comes back to haunt him. JohnLiz RononTeyla
1. Chapter 1

** Author's Note: This kind of just appeared on my screen without much thought, lol. I just remember staring at my screen blankly then !BOOM! I had the start to another AU story :shrugs: I needed a break from Gangster's Paradise anyway...oh for anyone who is waiting for that update don't worry it's on its way. Anyway back to this one...**

**It's mainly Sparky and Spanky with some Carson/Laura thrown into the mix.**

**Summary: **

The Captain of the Liberty, John Sheppard, and his crew, Laura Cadman and Marcus Lorne (I refuse to call him Evan), are placed in a difficult situation when they are forced to work for the Imperium under the watchful eye of Imperium Guard, Teyla Emmagan. The mission is made much more difficult when Sheppard's past comes back to haunt him and the Resistance stand in the way.

**

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Liberty - Chapter 1**

The floor became the ceiling.

John's dazed eyes snapped open only moments before his body, still tangled beneath the plainly coloured bed sheets, followed the ships movements, soaring through the air and connecting with the cool, solid surface of the rusty looking metal wall. The sound of the impact echoed mockingly around the room followed closely by a painful groan before the ship righted itself again and sent John sliding down the wall - head first - to the floor, his bedding floating serenely through the air and landing over his head.

"This is not happening," he groaned disbelievingly, scurrying out from beneath the suffocating quilt and pulling himself to his feet by grabbing onto the metal framework of his rack. His eyes reluctantly surveyed the damage the unsuspected tumble had caused to his cabin; drawers had opened, disrespectfully discarding all of his possessions onto to grated metal flooring, mementos and what he liked to call souvenirs lay scattered with them and his mattress seemed to have attached itself to the wall opposite his bunk.

He blinked once…twice then ran both hands through his naturally messy jet black hair, his brain still reluctant to leave its sleep fogged and adrenaline high state, which was helpful really considering that it was probably concealing the pain his close encounter with the wall produced. With a sigh he let his left arm drop to the side and lashed out at the comm panel just at the side of his rack.

"Um…Lorne," he began lightly, booting a pair of shoes from beneath his feet. "Why'd my ship just roll?"

"Good question," Lorne retorted, the sound of buttons being hit resounding in the background, as well as what sounded like a sparking console. "I think the internal stabilisers might have copped out."

"Really," John responded sarcastically, "I never would have guessed."

"I don't know why you're complaining, you wanted a wake up call, you got one," Lorne muttered, John rolled his eyes.

"I didn't want one that would break my ship," he hissed, pulling on a black, baggy t-shirt that he picked up from the floor, ignoring the creases clearly visible and fastening his jacket over them. He spotted his leather trousers peaking out from under his bunk and made a grab for them, immediately putting them on.

"She's not broken," Lorne replied defensively just as an explosion reverberated in the background. "Much," he added nervously. John shut the comm off and slammed his feet into the first pair of shoes he could find, running out of the doors as they parted for him automatically. His quick pace rattled the deck plating, the corridors whizzing passed him as he sprinted towards his destination.

Finally stairs appeared before him and he gripped the railing hauling himself upwards two steps at a time, the bridge came into view along with a cloud of blackened smoke trailing through and into the doorway. He waved his hand about trying to clear the air before finally entering the room.

Lorne sat in front of the central console - the pilots' chair - in front of the view screen that stretched from floor to ceiling, the expanse of stairs outside displayed on it. His fingers were rapidly tapping tattoo on the console. John stepped in front of the other console which was embedded within the wall, ripping off a panel and tossing it over his shoulder, metal against metal sounding around the room.

Lorne peered backwards, "Thought you'd be going to the engine room."

"And get my head ripped off for getting in the way…I think I'll pass," he said, pulling his bottom lip between his teeth as he reached beneath the console to the wires behind it. He felt around and finally found the one he was looking for, yanking it out and getting himself shocked in the process; he jumped backwards.

"Dammit!"

"That'll serve you right for messing with my baby," a female voice drawled, the sound of a hatch slamming open reaching his and Lorne's ears. John stood slowly and turned, his eyes falling onto his engineer as she pulled her self up from the access tunnel in the back corner. Half of her honey blonde hair had rebelliously pulled itself from her hair tie and was matted and tangled around her face; dirt streaked on her cheeks and coated her from head to toe. He smirked as Lorne chose that moment to swivel in his seat, choking on his guffaw as she leveled a glare at them both.

"Don't you dare," she growled, emphasizing each word with a stab of the spanner she held at John's head.

"Laura," John gulped, the blue fire burning in her eyes making him nervous. "Is my ship ok now?"

"Oh yeah, for now at least," she replied angrily.

"For now," he repeated with a sigh, this was all they needed. They had been coursing through space for five days heading towards the edge of the Pegasus sector hoping to get some clients, they were still weeks away and that was with the jump drive working.

She growled, "What'd I tell you about using Kav's parts? Do you remember that conversation?"

"Um…"

"Where I said they wouldn't last, he was a good for nothing cheating scumbag who wouldn't know what a hydro spanner was if it hit him in the face."

"I um…" he tried to answer but she jabbed his chest with the spanner. He looked over at Lorne who was casually leaning back in his chair -facing their direction - with his hands behind his head, watching the scene in obvious amusement.

He noticed John's pleading look and grinned evilly. "I remember." John glared and Laura spun in his direction, her eyes narrowing dangerously.

"Lorne," she breathed sweetly, "shut up!"

"Yes Ma'am," he laughed.

"Laura you know we didn't have a choice, it was his parts or we would have been grounded. Would you have preferred that?" John reasoned, pulling the spanner out of her hand and placing it out of reach. She sighed noisily in response and crossed her arms defensively. "I didn't think so."

"I didn't think so," she mocked, pulling a face in his direction causing Lorne to burst out laughing and John to smirk. "We need to make a pit stop. I fixed her as well as I could but were basically relying on good old fashioned luck…that and glue." She pulled the co-pilots seat out and threw herself into it.

"Yeah ok…wait, did you say glue?" John panicked.

"Don't. Even. Start." she warned not even looking at him. He nodded and turned to his pilot.

"Nearest planet?"

"Earth," he told him happily, his smile widening at John's groan. "Come on Sheppard, it isn't that bad; great sights, good food…great women." Laura hit him around the back of his head.

"Law enforcement everywhere," John added, watching as Lorne rubbed the back of his head.

"What was that for?" he cried incredulously, completely ignoring what John had said.

Laura shrugged, "For being a pig." Lorne spun around to face his friend. Laura's look dared him to start something.

"Now, now children, lets not get carried away," John intervened, knowing the start of an argument when he saw one. He ran a hand through his hair and stared at the back wall. Did they go to Earth and try and avoid authorities? Or did they carry on and probably end up dead in space.

His shoulders slumped, "Earth it is."

-----

"Ladies and Gentlemen, we are now arriving at Earth, if you look to the left and out of the view screen you will see what this planet is famous for," Lorne mocked as his fingers danced across the controls, "a giant orb of pollution."

Laura snorted, "Not to mention the biggest damn collection of Imperium guards you'll ever set eyes on. One false move and you'll find yourself enjoying the _luxurious_ accommodations of detention." She looked over at Lorne as he burst out laughing and smirked. "I thought you liked this place," she accused, spinning around in her chair and jabbing a finger into his shoulder. He shooed away her hand and made a show of brushing his shoulder off as if it was dirty. Laura scowled.

"Nah not really," he explained as a holographic grid appeared in front of the view screen, he tapped the blip representing Earth setting the ship on auto pilot before he turned his chair to be face to face with Laura. "Too many rules for my liking; plus Sheppard hates it, which always makes him fantastic to be around."

"Is there a story there or something?" she asked curiously. John was usually charming and had a great sense of humor, yet ever since Earth was mentioned he had become eerily calm and closed if - it freaked her out. She had only known John and Lorne for about a year, ever since they saved her from a Wraith raiding party who had had their eyes set her little shuttle, she'd been a part of their crew ever since. She knew that Lorne would know more about John then she did - they'd been friends since childhood.

"Let's just say that his ego took a beating the last time we were here," he replied evasively, humor present in his eyes.

"His ego uh," Laura probed, absentmindedly chewing on her lip. "That means it involved a woman."

"You didn't get that from me," Lorne muttered, holding his fist up in a pretend threat.

"Oh come on," Laura whined, "You can't just tell me that. What happened?"

"I wasn't there you know," he complained, standing up and stretching. Laura narrowed her eyes at him and Lorne sighed in resignation retaking his seat. "Fine, but if you ever repeat a word of this to anyone, even your own reflection I'll space you."

"I swear I won't," Laura assured, pulling her knees to her chest and resting her chin on top of them, her curious eyes never leaving his face. Lorne leaned in closer, dropping his voice to a whisper.

"We were grounded here for three weeks, about five or so years ago. I ended up hunting for parts whilst he scouted out clients. Anyway he met this woman and fell for her…hard.

"In a few weeks?" Laura interrupted, her voice clearly expressing her disbelief.

"Yes. Like I said he fell for her, love at first sight and all that. Anyway they spent time together and were practically joined at the hip. I hardly even saw him."

"You mean you didn't meet her?!"

"No I didn't," Lorne growled in annoyance. "Now are you going to shut up and let me finish or don't you want to hear the rest?"

"Alright, alright," she soothed, holding her hands up in a placating gesture.

"Where was I…umm…yeah…so one day he woke up and she had just disappeared. No explanation, no goodbye, no nothing. He barely spoke for a week afterwards. I've never seen him like that before."

"Seen who like what?" John asked from the doorway. Laura and Lorne snapped around at his voice trying their hardest not to look guilty. Luckily for them Lorne's console beeped alerting them to the fact that they had arrived.

"They're hailing us," Lorne announced unnecessarily as Laura lowered her legs and straightened in her seat. John moved closer to them, placing his hands on the backs of the chairs and leaning towards the view screen.

"Well let's not keep them waiting," John drawled. The view screen shimmered and flickered, gradually forming the image of an attractive woman, wearing an off-white outfit and with shoulder length black hair. She stood regally against a plain, computer generated background with her arms folded gracefully in front of her.

"Welcome to Earth," her autonomic voice greeted, as emotionless as her indifferent face. "Please state the name of your ship, type and class for the records."

John sighed, "Liberty, cruiser, class four." The woman stiffly turned her head, reading information that was invisible to everyone but her before she turned her head back in their direction.

"John Sheppard, Captain. You may proceed to the following co-ordinates." The console Laura was sitting before sounded.

"Got em," the engineer chimed.

"Please ensure you abide by the laws of the Imperium. Enjoy your stay." The view screen flickered off, revealing the slowly turning, blue and green orb below them.

"Holograms," John muttered under his breath, electing a grin from Lorne whilst Laura still stared at the screen. John noticed her preoccupation and shook her chair. "What's up? Never seen a hologram before?" he teased.

"No," Laura told him absentmindedly. "She looked so - so real."

"Yeah, the tech around here is miles ahead of the outskirts," Lorne said as he began the landing procedure.

"Yeah I guess it is," Laura sighed in response, "but at least in the outskirts you have your freedom."

"Hear, hear, "John and Lorne agreed simultaneously as the Liberty entered Earth's atmosphere.

_**Five or so years ago - Earth**__**…**_

_Vibrations shuddered throughout the ship as the landing struts impacted the ground, signifying an almost perfect landing. John slapped Lorne on the back and grinned cheekily._

"_Not bad.__"_

"_Not bad!__"__ Lorne cried out. __"__We__'__re lucky to be in one piece, so I__'__d say it__'__s a lot more than not bad.__"_

"_Whoa, no need to get all defensive. I was only saying,__"__ he grinned as Lorne shut down the engines and spun in John__'__s direction._

"_Yeah, yeah, yeah whatever, I heard what you weren__'__t saying,__"__ he grumbled teasingly, standing up from the chair and following John out of the doors and towards the hatch. The Liberty wasn__'__t a big ship and could easily be run by just two people even though it was large enough to keep ten, not to mention had a great deal of storage space - some hidden and some not._

"_I think you__'__re imagining things Lorne. Space must be getting to ya, some fresh air will do you good.__"_

"_Fresh air__…__on Earth, yeah and the Wraith are really sensitive souls who care passionately about peace in the galaxy,__"__ he snorted in response. He punched the release mechanism for the hatch listening as the old door creaked open, revealing the hustle and bustle of the busy Earth landing bay. Market stalls and people were as far as the eye could see and the distinctive forms of Imperium guards stood out amongst the crowds, their black uniforms making them noticeable._

"_Is it me, or do their numbers increase every time we come here,__"__ John questioned rhetorically, squinting his eyes a little as the natural sunlight hit them, causing a slight sting. Lorne was less patient and jumped off the side of the ramp, causing dirt to explode around his feet. When John had finally stepped onto Earth he closed the hatch and entered in his code, sealing the doors from intruders. It wasn__'__t really necessary - no one was really stupid enough to do something illegal in front of Imperium guards._

"_Right Boss, what are we doing?__"__ Lorne questioned hurriedly, his eyes already scanning their surroundings and focusing on several of the female population. John rolled his eyes._

"_I__'__m going to scout out some clients,__"__ John answered, __"__whilst you get us the parts we need.__"__ Lorne__'__s face fell._

"_Why do you get the good job?" He whined, staring longingly at the bars lining the port. John followed his gaze, his hazel-green eyes glinting in appreciation at the females that lined up the streets before he turned back to Lorne and mock scowled at him._

"_Because the last time you went to find clients all you came back with was a comm number and a lipstick mark," John explained in amusement as his friend smiled fondly at the memory._

"_I did didn'__t I," he stated proudly, almost falling on his face when John pushed him in the direction of the markets._

"_Get out of here."_

"_Yes sir," he saluted, spinning on his heel and marching into the mass ocean of people, disappearing in its depths. John wordlessly shook his head as a slow smirk upturned his mouth. _

"_He__y, move it," came a shrill voice from behind him, the owner of the voice grabbing his shoulder and physically moving him out of the way. The podgy woman, covered in swirling, orange and yellow, baggy clothing pushed passed him and shot him a look that would have probably desecrated a lesser man. "Some of us don__'__t have all day you know," she added before stomping off. John rolled his eyes - like he cared._

_Weaving and dodging his way through the throng of people he finally reached the SGC bar. Its tall and sleek, metallic design made it stand out against the smaller businesses scattered along the make shift street , it was pretty much the only decent place on this side of Earth and the only one he would even consider scouting clients from. He approached the entrance, the silver doors gently hissing as they parted._

_He quickly entered the club and strolled passed the occupied tables in the room, taking a seat on one of the many bar stools arranged near the bar. He had only just taken a seat when the barman appeared stealthily before him._

"_Welcome to the SGC," his deep, steady voice greeted accompanied by a slow nod. The light of the bar glinted on the golden emblem on his forehead which stood out against his dark skin. Kind but wise eyes studied him, waiting expectantly for an answer._

"_Thanks. So you'__re the barkeep I take it?"_

"_Indeed," he answered, removing his arms which had been behind his back and placing them at his side. "Can I get you__ a refreshment?"_

"_Um…sure. I'__ll just have whatever you suggest." With that said the muscular man serenely reached beneath the counter and pulled out a glass and a bottle, placing them before John. John placed a few credits into the big mans palm._

"_Hey Teal'__c, you better get back over here or you__'__re gonna miss out," came a yell from the background._

"_I am on my way, O'__Neill," Teal__'__c responded, turning in John__'__s direction. "Excuse me." John watched as the guy walked off and turned his attention back to surveying the bar; several customers sat around tables, drinks in front of them and chatting quietly. Suddenly the doors parted, bringing with it an unexpected gust of air that snapped John__'__s attention in that direction._

_A slim, womanly figure emerged from the outside world, her long legs quickly bringing her fully into the room as the doors re-closed. Her head was still turned in the direction of the door and she appeared to be breathing heavily, as if she had been running. The position of her body pulled the tight, plain black t-shirt she wore tighter around her curves, exposing the creamy expanse of skin of her lower back, as it pulled away from fitted black trousers that stretched down until they were covered by knee length, leather boots, with stiletto heels. The belt she wore, hung loosely around her hips. He had to resist the urge to whistle, others in the room didn__'__t._

_She seemed oblivious to the attention she had gained and casually threaded her fingers through her curly, chocolate brown hair that fell just past her shoulders pulling it behind her ears as she turned fully to face the bar, and in effect John. With a confident stride she gracefully glided to one of the stools next to his and sat down, leaning her elbows on the bars surface and flinging her hair over her shoulder as she leaned the side of her head against her palm, bringing her eye to eye with John._

_Glittering emeralds stared vaguely at him before the corner of her mouth upturned, morphing into a full blown grin. John didn__'__t know what she found so amusing until his senses seemed to come to life all at once._

"_You'__ve spilt your drink," she chuckled, glancing down at the darkened patch on his trouser leg. He rubbed at the spot pointlessly._

_He sighed, "You don__'__t say." How he had managed to spill his drink was beyond him. He muttered under his breath as he attempted to remove the evidence and felt a distinctive tingling in his cheeks, the embarrassment setting in. She seemed to notice and bit her lip to stifle the laugh that threatened to escape. She leaned into his personal space slightly and lowered her voice._

"_Well it could have been worse." She let her chuckle escape and he couldn'__t help but join her._

"_Yeah your right, it could have been. I'__m John by the way," he offered. She pursed her lips thoughtfully for a moment before she leaned over the bar and snatched his bottle, bringing it to her lips. He stared at her incredulously and was about to comment but she beat him to it._

"_You were going to buy me one anyway," she explained teasingly, taking another sip to __emphasize her point; John couldn__'__t argue and decided to stare at her until she gave him her name. She noticed his expectant look and smiled. "I__'__m Beth, nice to meet you John." _

_Tbc…_

So...what do you think? Should I continue:grins:


	2. Chapter 2

** Author's Note:** It seems I'm on a roll :grin: So in this chappy we have a couple more _flashbacks in italics_ and we meet someone new :grin: 

**Hannah554** - Thank you thank you thank you :hugs: Your demand worked for once, lol. I hope you enjoy this chapter just as much.

**quietfractures **- Thanks, I'm glad you think so :grin:

**fyd818** - Umm...wow...one of the best beginnings you've ever read :blushes: Thank you so much, you don't know how much you've just motivated me, lol. I haven't stopped grinning like a fool since I got your review and I'm sure I'm still bright red :grins: Um...I hope you enjoy this chapter just as much. :huggles:

**Manic Penguin** - I hate it too, lol. I've got to admit though the Sparky in this fic is very angsty; well, apart from some of the flashbacks :squees: Thanks for the review and I hope youy like this chappy too.

**Sounni** - I can't beleive it either, lol. When I read it through I was hitting myself screaming 'How could you do this to Sparky' :smiles sheepishly: but...wait i can't tell you, it would give it away, lol. Thanks for the review, I hope you like this chapter.

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Landing on Earth this time around was a lot different from the first time. Even though the ship needed repairing, it was no where near the condition it had been the last time round - Laura was a natural with engines. Gazing back at his ship fondly, he reluctantly headed towards the one place he would rather never see again, the only problem was he had promised the owners that he would stop by if he was ever in the area and he never broke a promise - intentionally anyway - which was why he found himself staring at the silver doors before him in trepidation.

He had left Laura and Lorne with the responsibility to get the parts they needed, knowing that Laura knew what she needed and that Lorne would keep her on check with the budget - she tended to get over excited if she found any new parts and Earth was bound to have more new inventions.

"You can go in you know," a highly amused voice said from behind him. He spun around to face the owner and sure enough there stood the one and only Jack O'Neill, adjourning his usual sunglasses and casual clothes - it was as if nothing had changed. Jack stepped forward so that he was by John's side. "Is their something wrong with the doors that I don't know about?"

John snorted, "Well they could do with a bit a work."

"You offering," Jack retorted, raising his eyebrow threateningly. John smirked cheekily.

"Normally I would but you know I'm here on business an all." Jack smirked before hitting John's back and pushing him through the doors.

"It's good to have you back Sheppard, thought we'd never see you again. What's it been, five years?" He maneuvered John into the same seat he used his first time in the bar then jumped over the bar so that he was behind it, grabbing two glasses from beneath the counter along with a bottle.

"Yeah, I'm surprised you remember me," he joked, snatching his now full glass from the bar and taking a sip.

"I always remember my best customers," Jack said simply, "You and Beth were especially entertaining." Jack noticed John stiffen but pretended not to notice.

"Yeah…well." He shifted uncomfortably on the stool. "How's the old ball and chain?"

The person in question punched John in the arm making her presence known. She had been standing in the corner of the bar when both men had walked in and had listened to every word.

"Who are you calling old?" she cried out, feigning hurt before a grin broadened her features, lighting up her bright blue eyes. She gave John a quick hug and kissed Jack's cheek causing the older man to grin. "I'm fine thank you very much," she continued, pulling herself up onto the bar so that she was sitting on it, her legs swaying in front of her.

"I was talking about his other ball and chain Sam," John teased, "You know short brown hair, glasses, always talks a lot."

"Oh Daniel," she assumed, going along with the joke. O'Neill scowled and threw a cloth in Sam's face which she quickly caught and threw back at him.

"You two are worse then kids. Now I remember why I was happy to see you leave," Jack groused good- naturedly as he narrowed his eyes at John.

Sam continued, "Janet and him left a couple of years back, they took Teal'c with them too." She smiled sadly. "They finally got married you know," she announced happily.

"Wow," John grinned, "I always knew Daniel and Teal'c were meant to be." Jack burst out laughing as Sam groaned.

"Oh I give up, you are impossible." She jumped back to her feet and headed towards the door to go into the back room, as she reached the threshold she looked back over her shoulder. "They'll be sorry that they missed you." With that said she disappeared behind the door, leaving the two men alone.

"You wanna room then," Jack questioned.

"No it's alright. I'll stay on my ship," John replied, his eyes becoming distant.

"_So do you live around here then?" John asked his companion, who had just finished his bottle. Her eyes were slightly glazed and he could tell the alcohol had taken affect on her - it was after all a large bottle, not too mention strong stuff and he was surprised she wasn't out of it yet, most men twice her size would have been._

"_No I'm just passing through. Speaking of which…I need a room," she answered, leaving the bottle on the bar and glancing around the room. When she didn't spot who she was looking for she got to her feet and headed to the door at the side of the bar, opening it immediately.._

"_Jack?" she called out, her brows furrowing when no one answered. "O'Neill, get your butt out here. I know your there." John heard someone shouting back but he couldn't make out the words, he was kind of distracted by the smile on Beth's face. Suddenly a older man, with graying hair and brown eyes poked his head out of the door, grinning when he saw the person who summoned him _

"_What the hell are you doing here?" The man asked in shock. "I didn't even know you were on Earth."_

"_You know me, just passing through," she told him, running her fingers through her hair and grinning. "You wouldn't happen to have a room available would you? Oh and another bottle of that," she asked, pointing to the empty bottle next to John._

"_Make a new friend," he teased and she rolled her eyes, heading back in John's direction and re-taking her seat as Jack headed behind the bar, taking a card key from a shelf on the wall and throwing it in front of her. He took another bottle out from beneath the bar and set it in front of them both. John went to hand him some credits but Jack dismissed his hand._

"_It's on the house," he explained causing Beth to smile her thanks. _

"_Thanks," John said gratefully before smirking at Beth. "I wish I'd have met you sooner Beth, especially if you can get me free drinks." John was turned away from Jack and didn't notice the man's eyebrows rising at the mention of her name. _

"_Who says you can have any," she retorted, narrowing her eyes in Jack's direction, he backed away with a smirk on his face._

"_Well I'll leave you kids to it," he stated, heading back towards the door. _

"_Cya Jack," she said, giving him a small wave._

"_Yeah, thanks for the drink," John added as he poured himself a glass._

"_No problem," the older man replied disappearing through the door, leaving the two of them alone, or as alone as they could be with a room full of patrons. John swirled his drink thoughtfully and started when a hand covered his on the glass and another took the glass from his hand._

"_Hey," he cried. "You stole my last drink and you want to steal this one too."_

"_Yep," she answered gleefully, downing the rest of his drink in one swig. John stared in astonishment, his eyes darkening as she licked her lips to remove the liquid that remained there causing her rose coloured lips to shine irresistibly._

"_How is that fair?"_

"_It isn't," she responded, "but who said anything about me being fair," she teased as she grabbed the bottle, using her free hand to pick up the key and put it in her pocket. She peered out of the window and John followed her gaze, noticing that it was darker now as dusk set in; streaks of light could be made out on the horizon as the sun inched its way out of sight and the moon glistened translucently in the darker part of the sky. "Well I'm going now; it was nice to meet you."_

_John felt a deep sense of disappointment set in, for some reason he really didn't want her to leave. "Can I walk you to where you're staying?" he asked, getting up on his feet so that he was standing in front of her, gazing into her eyes. He noticed a blush staining her cheeks and he couldn't help the smug inner smirk - she was obviously affected by him as much as he was her._

"_I don't know," she drawled and looked up at him through her lashes, "I don't want you to maul me on the street or anything."_

"_I promise, no mauling," he replied grinning impishly. He placed his hand on the small of her back, gently escorting her away from the bar. As he got to the door he added, "for now anyway." He couldn't help but smile as her laugh permeated the air._

_They slowly walked to where she was staying, which was only down the road from the SGC. Beth had told him that Jack and a group of his friends owned quite a few small business's around this area of Earth; the bar, the motel they were approaching and a shuttle shop - O'Neill's wife was something of a mechanical genius and had come up with evolutional designs, causing quite an uproar in the tech world._

"_How did you meet then, if you're not on Earth much?" John asked curiously, shoving his hands in his pockets._

"_Teal'c travels a lot and Jack tends to accompany him. I literally bumped into him on Chulak, when Teal'c was visiting his son."_

"_You weren't kidding when you said you traveled a lot," John whistled, Chulak was at the other end of the system, two weeks away even with the best jump systems. She smiled slightly and paused at the steps to the motel._

"_It's part of my job," she told him as she turned into his personal space finding him so close to her that she could actually feel the heat from his body, she swallowed quickly and gazed up into his eyes._

"_And what is it that you do?" he asked in a low tone, his eyes moving between her lips and eyes as if he couldn't decide where to look. She tilted her head back and pursed her lips._

"_Wouldn't you like to know," she retorted, her lips a mere inch away from his. He moved closer and was just about to kiss her when she turned her head and is lips landed on her cheek. He groaned and looked up to see her smiling knowingly at him._

"_Tease…" He muttered with a smile in his voice causing her to chuckle quietly as she slowly backed her way up the stairs. She turned and put the key in the door, the sound of the card being scanned indicating the lock was dong its job. A click sounded signifying the unlocking of the door and she glanced over her shoulder, seeing him licking his lower lip with an anxiously puzzled expression on his face - it was cute._

"_I'll see you tomorrow John, it's the SGC's weekly Barbeque event, Jack loves trying to cook," she announced, breaking the electrified silence that had befallen them before entering the motel. He watched her get greeted with a hug by a short, pretty brunet woman with brown eyes before the doors shut completely, leaving him alone with a ridiculous grin on his face, one he couldn't get rid of even when he returned to the Liberty._

"Earth to Sheppard…hello," Jack said, bringing him back from his thoughts by waving a hand in front of his face.

"Sorry Jack, I was miles away," he replied sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck with his hand and rolling his shoulders.

"You should take the room," Jack insisted, "It's much better then those racks you sleep in on that ship of yours."

"Thanks but…"

"No buts, I insist," Jack demanded, pushing the key card over to John across the bar. John was about to protest when he noticed Jacks 'don't argue with me' look and he sighed in resignation, taking out the communicator from his pocket and bringing it to his mouth.

"Lorne, you there?" John spoke into the device which crackled slightly before another voice sounded through it.

"No," Lorne mocked causing John to snort.

"I'm staying in the motel tonight so I won't be coming back to the ship," he told him, his face showing his bewilderment when he heard arguing in the background. "What's going on over there?"

"Oh nothing much," Lorne insisted, though John could hear his pilots amusement clearly. "Laura's just met her match," he added vaguely. "Do we have enough money to bail her out for murder?"

"What?!" John laughed.

"I think that might be where this is headed," he warned jokingly as the shouting increased.

"Well keep her in check, if she gets sent down we're leaving her," John kidded, shaking his head at his crews antics.

"Got it," Lorne responded. "See you tomorrow." The line cut just after John heard Lorne yelling 'Laura Sheppard says I can leave you if you get sent down'. Shaking his head he turned back to Jack who had a bemused expression on his face.

"Thanks for the room, I think I'll head there now," he told Jack, waving the card in the air pointlessly. Jack gave him a sharp wave before he turned to serve another customer, who was tapping a foot impatiently. The doors parted and the sound of the busy Earth port hit his ears causing him to sigh - today was going to be a long day.

-----

Angry shouts and frustrated growls formed a symphony as two figures argued with each other in the centre of one of the main tech shops on the port. Shelves and more shelves lined the walls, filled with all sorts of parts and various materials. Lorne casually leaned back on one wall, bracing himself with his elbows on a shelf behind him and watching the argument with great interest.

Laura's blonde hair whipped around as she turned on the annoying man before her, his brown eyes flashing as his cheeks flushed an angry red. She gestured wildly with her hands to emphasize her point.

"I don't want that one," she hissed, pointing to the part in the man's hands, "I want that one!" She pointed sharply at a part on the shelf near Lorne's head.

"You can't put that part in a class four Liberty," the angry man shouted. "It's not compatible."

"Yes it is!" Laura hissed.

"Oh really and you're qualified to make that judgment how? I don't see you're name above the door of your own tech shop," the man retorted smugly.

"That's because I've got better things to do with my time, like actually running a cruiser and gaining first hand experience around an engine. You obviously wouldn't know one if it hit you in the head," she shouted, earning a grin of approval from Lorne.

"Sorry to interrupt," Lorne butted in sarcastically, pushing himself away from the wall and taking the part Laura wanted from the shelf before walking over to the steaming duo. He glared at Rodney, "You're supposed to SELL parts the customer wants and the customer wants this one. You're not supposed to bore us to death with your endless tirade. Now can we buy this and leave you to your miserable existence…please," he added with a cheeky grin.

"You can't talk to me like that?" He cried.

"He can and he just did," Laura told him happily.

"But…but…you can't…I," he spluttered at an obvious loss for words. His partner walked towards him with a scolding expression on his face, having witnessed the whole exchange from the back office.

"Rodney, you can't treat customers like that," he told him as he bounced on the souls of his feet, his mess of curly hair bouncing with him.

"What would you know Zelenka?" he snapped before shoving the unwanted part into his hands and heading towards the counter.

"Enough to know that the lady," he smiled shyly in Laura's direction, "is right"

"Thank you," Laura beamed after throwing a glare in Rodney's direction.

"What?" Rodney cried indignantly. "I think you've inhaled too many fuel fumes, you obviously don't know what you're talking about…then again you never do," he ranted.

"Think about it Rodney, it is simple really. If you just change the resonating…" Rodney cut him off as he snapped his fingers repeatedly, quickly walking behind the counter.

"Yes, yes, yes, of course. If you just change the resonating wave to a lower frequency and switch the release valve to full…its simple but," he reluctantly glanced at Laura and with a forced tone continued, "ingenious."

"There you go Laura, you can live the rest of your life in splendor, the great Rodney McKay complemented your work," Lorne drawled, earning himself a chuckle from Zelenka who got glared at by McKay.

"Oh joy," she sighed. "Can I have the part now?"

"What? Oh yes, of course you can," McKay said, ignoring the sarcasm aimed at him. "What other modifications have you made?"

"Lots," she replied dismissively, rolling her eyes as she turned her back to him. Lorne handed the credits needed for the part over to Rodney, who stared at them blankly for a moment.

"I'll give you all the parts you want for free if you let me look," he offered quickly." Both Laura and Lorne spun in his direction as Zelenka sighed tiredly and used his finger to push his glasses back into place before muttering under his breath and leaving the room.

"No!" Laura exclaimed just as Lorne said, "Really?!"

"Yes, every single part you want, for free." Laura saw the look in Lorne's eyes and shook her head.

"No Lorne, I don't want him in my engine room. No, no, no and no!" She hit his arm and growled, noticing that his expression hadn't changed at all. "I can't believe you're doing this to me, I'm never going to forgive you…ever!"

Lorne guffawed, "You'll get over it. Just think of all the new shiny toys you'll have to play with."

"I hope you like taking cold showers because I have a feeling, the water system in your quarters is going to malfunction…very, very soon," she threatened.

"Is that a yes?" Rodney asked hopefully.

"Yep, it is," Lorne stated cheerfully, winking in Laura's direction. She growled and stormed over to the shelves, pointing at the different parts she wanted as McKay called Zelenka back in to start packing the parts - hopefully some retail therapy would make her feel better, Lorne thought.

-----

John dragged himself up the stairs making his way to the room Jack had given him for the night. The new manager of the inn was a man by the name of Jonas Quinn and he had been waiting for him to arrive, probably because Jack had informed the man of his arrival. He had dismissed the man's offer of help, knowing the way to this room like the back of his hand. It seemed like only yesterday since he had last been here and even though it had been five years the memories still hurt like hell.

_John threw her over his shoulder, even as she protested half heartedly and tried to break free of his grasp. It was very early in the __morning; the SGC barbeque having lasted much longer then anyone had expected it too. With the unexpected arrival of Beth the SGC staff - which he learned consisted of; Jack and his wife Sam, Daniel and his long time girlfriend Janet and last but not least Teal'c - had wanted to play catch up. They were a friendly group of people and John knew he hadn't laughed so much in a long time - they were ridiculously funny._

_Alcohol had flowed freely and he had - rather foolishly - challenged Beth to a drinking competition, much to the amusement of the others, who had placed all of their bets on Beth - now he knew why, she had won hands down. The side affect of this was of course the fact that they both were more than a little gone, but neither of them minded._

"_John," she squealed girlishly, pushing at his back. "Put me down." He laughed as he neared the door to her room, letting her slide down his body to her feet, still pulled flushed against him. He stepped forward forcing her to take a step back, her back hitting the door with a thump. She tilted her head back and her lips were instantly by covered by his. He coaxed a moan from her throat, using that as an excuse to slide his tongue in to meet hers. Everything about her filled his senses; her scent, her taste, the feel of her skin against his palm as he discovered the skin beneath her top. She pulled away breathlessly, her hands resting on his chest._

"_This is insane," she whispered as his hands drifted to her waste, his thumbs caressing the skin above her waste band._

"_I know," he whispered back, moving his lips to the curve of her neck. She bit her lip to stop a whimper escaping her throat and blindly reached for the door handle, finally gripping it on the third try. The old fashioned door swung open and with a surprised yelp she fell backwards, John following her lead and landing on top of her. They both laughed before he smothered the sound with another soul shattering kiss, kicking the door closed with his foot. _

"_I shouldn't feel like this," she continued when the kiss broke again. He rested his forehead against hers and opened his eyes._

"_Neither should I, but I do." Her hands caressed his back, slowly moving upwards until she threaded them through his hair, scraping his head with her fingernails lightly. She gently kissed his lips again, then again and again until they got lost in each other._

He pushed the door open, his heart aching with the fact that this time he was alone, she wasn't here and she would never be again. An unexpected surge of bitterness overwhelmed him and he forcibly removed his jacket and threw it across the room, the material thudding painfully against the wall. He slumped onto the bed, cradling his head in his hands and closed his eyes to stop the onslaught of tears that threatened to fall. He would never allow him self to be hurt like that again.

Tbc…


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note:** Ok here is chapter three and I really hate it, lol. In fact if it wasn't for Hannah554, who threatened me alot, I would have deleted the whole thing -smiles sheepishly- Anyway I resisted the temptation to delete it and finally decided to post it. I hope you like it...even if I don't -grin-

belanna30 - WOW...two reviews, I'm feeling very honored at the minute -hugs- Thank you so much! I hope you enjoy this chappy as well!

Izzles - Ouch! That hurt! -rubs arm and glares- ...lol. I couldn't resist putting some Laura/Rodney bickering in this -grin- and as for the conversation between John, Jack and Sam -chuckles- I'm glad you like it. The last flashback -joins in squeeing- I love writing the flashbacks, I'm glad you enjoy reading them! Hope you like this chapter and thanks for the review -tackle hugs-

KariHermione - Thanks! -big grin- I love Lorne and Laura separately and I thought why not put them together...they deserve it -grin-. I don't know where their banter came from but...-shrugs- it wrote itself really so I went with it, I'm glad it works -smiles- When does Beth come back? -bites lip- I can't tell you that -gg- it would give it away...I'll just leave you with soon...very very soon. Thanks for the review and I hope you enjoy this chappy -huggles-

fyd818 - Thank you! Don't worry about making me blush...it happens all the time especially when my fics get complemented -smiles sheepishly- Everyone seems to like Laura and Lorne -grin- I'm glad that it came across well. As for John -sniffle- I want to hug him too. I hate seeing John upset...I just hope you guys don't start hating me when I reveal more -goes all secretive- I hope you like this chappy -hugs-

Hannah 554 - Be careful -pushes Hannah furthur back into seat- I don't want you falling, lol. Thanks for the review and I hope you like this update -hands cookie-

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_Rays of the morning light breached the seal of the curtain causing shadows to scatter and dance across the walls, the breeze coming from the slightly open window wavering the curtain. His arms tightened around the body pressed firmly against his and he maneuvered his other arm around her, tightening his hold and burying his nose into her hair. _

"_You're squishing me," she complained tiredly around a yawn, even though she held his arms around her with her own._

"_Good," he replied cheerfully, loosening his arms finally so that she could twist around to face him. She leaned her head in the crook of his arm and finally met his eyes, hers still blinking groggily - she clearly wasn't a morning person._

"_Hi," she muttered, pressing her face further into his shoulder and yawning again._

"_You can't go to sleep," he told her seriously, even as he smirked._

"_And why would that be Mr. Sheppard?" she asked into his shoulder, still refusing to wake up fully._

"_Because I said so." _

"_Is that right," she murmured. "Well unfortunately I don't agree. Someone kept me up all night." She smiled flirtatiously. "So it's going to take a little bit of persuasion to wake me up." Without warning he jumped up, trapping her hands above her head and covering her body with his._

"_Really?" She nodded and bit her lip to stop herself from giggling like a teenager. "Well in that case…" _

Leaping out of bed John stormed into the bathroom, shoving his hands into the sink and instantly starting the water flow. He let his hands fill with the cool, refreshing liquid and threw it onto his face before bracing his hands against the sink and leaning forward, blinking through the haze of his memory-like dream. His sleep had been filled with images of her and it was driving him insane, no matter what he did her face followed him everywhere; he couldn't forget and it reopened the wound every time.

Throwing on the clothes he wore the day before he marched out of the room and down the steps, quickly thanking Jonas, handing him the key card and saying goodbye. He needed to get out of this place and get as far away from this planet as he could and leave the past behind him. Being here only made it worse. The dark cloud of his mood followed him out through the door and down the street as he made his way back to his ship.

He rounded the corner and his place of solace finally came into view; hopefully they could get her fixed up and then hightail it out of here. He made his way through the crowd and frowned as he noticed how many more Imperium guards patrolled the landing port now. When he had last been here there had only been up to five guards roaming the area, now there were at least twenty and they were only the ones visible. The resistance must be doing a number on them, he thought silently as he had a near miss with a human bulldozer.

The Imperium was an alliance between all the major powers in the galaxy; unfortunately, most of them were power hungry and greedy, not caring about what happened on other planets. They were dictators and demanded that their rules be followed and obeyed - no questions asked. The resistance had formed immediately, making their opinions heard, but they were never a real threat until a few years back. Rumors had circled about a new leader running the group and new strategic attacks took place - ones the Imperium couldn't ignore and that lead to an up in security and made it extremely difficult to do anything illegal, which was kind of a downer for his type of work.

He agreed with the resistance and although he could never say it out loud, respected what they did. Anyone brave, or in some cases stupid enough to defy the Imperium had to have balls of steel. The Imperium was well known for its strong punishment methods; detention centers were scattered across the system where torture and integration techniques were promised to anyone who defied them, most never came out alive. Money was offered to anyone who would turn the so-called traitors in. He hated to think about what they would do to the leader of the resistance; they had offered fifty million credits - a record high - to the person that brought him in.

"Hey Sheppard," Lorne greeted cheerfully, purposely disregarding John's bad mood. He gave him a mock salute as John studied him questioningly. He was lounging on the docking ramp appearing to not have a care in the world. "Glad to see you back. You look like hell," he told him honestly. John had dark circles under his eyes and his clothes were rumpled and creased, add that to the dark cloud hovering over his head and it made an all together pitiful picture.

"Well thanks for that," John retorted tersely, even if he tried to hide it with his forced light tone. Lorne couldn't ignore the mood now.

"You alright?" He asked, reluctantly pulling himself to his feet and dusting off his clothes with his hands. He scowled at the stubborn stain that wouldn't move before looking up again. John's expression was beyond clouded and Lorne sighed inwardly - he already knew what type of answer he would get.

"Yeah, just didn't sleep much," John explained dismissively, not surprising Lorne at all. "Didn't I send you to get some parts?"

"You did and we got them, all of them. Every. Single. Last. one," Lorne emphasized joyfully, deciding to let John play his game and switch the conversation, it was none of his business after all and he vividly remembered what his friend went through the last time; it cant have been easy for him to come back here.

"Okay…what aren't you telling me?" John asked after he licked his lips. Lorne's semi-serious face exploded into an extremely self-satisfied smirk.

"We got them all for free, and before you ask; no, I'm not kidding and no, we didn't steal them." John began walking up the ramp, indicating that Lorne should follow. "I'm sure you heard Laura arguing with the tech guy through the comm yesterday." When John nodded Lorne continued, "Well Laura impressed him with her…improvisation and he was practically falling all over himself just to get a look."

"You mean Laura willingly let someone in her engine room?" John questioned in surprise, noticing his friends face change into a sheepish expression.

"No, I kind of made her and she has promised all sorts of horrible, vindictive things as revenge."

"Nothing new then," John joked tiredly before getting back to business. His eyes roamed over all of the parts that were scattered in n organized mess around the hold - at least something had gone well. "Does that mean the ship will be repaired soon?"

"Yeah," Lorne answered with a frown, running his fingers through his golden brown hair, "shouldn't take long…especially with McKay and Laura buzzing around the place. That is if they don't kill each other first. She's already threatened to give him to the Wraith twice."

"I want to get off this rock a.s.a.p.," John told him, not even noticing the joke.

"What, aren't we bothering with clients this time," he asked, side stepping one of the larger crates in order to keep up with his friend.

"Well because we got all these parts for free and we wont run out of credits for a while, I don't think we should bother, they're usually more hassle then they're worth anyway. We'll probably have more prospects out on the rim anyway," John explained with a shrug as he reached the door, he hit the door release panel and pushed it open, revealing the corridor beyond. "I'm going to get some rack time. Don't disturb me unless something disastrous happens," John told him before walking away.

Lorne gazed after his friend in concern before slowly surveying the cargo bay, he began moving the lighter crates and was just about to lift another when the sound of regulation boots against the deck - he had avoided them enough in his life to know what they sounded like- reached his ears. He slowly raised from his crouched position, subtly checking that his weapon was in place by pretending to wipe dirt from his hands onto his pants. Slowly, he turned around coming face to face with the prettiest Imperium guard he had ever had the displeasure of meeting; brown eyes met his as she stood at the top of the ramp. It was then that he realized she wasn't alone; twenty other guards were lined up outside and the bay was suspiciously clear of the travelers that had been there before, only minutes ago.

"Um…hi," he offered in his most charming voice, unfortunately for him it did nothing to remove the terse expression from her face. She was standard Imperium; wearing the regular black jumpsuit with the regulation jacket which was zipped up the front. The rank bar sitting where her collar bone was indicated her as Captain, and her light brown hair was tied away from her face neatly. Laura chose that moment to stroll into the cargo bay, completely oblivious to their unexpected guests.

"I am going to kill that man!" she exclaimed, unaware that she had an audience, not to mention a shadow. "Do you know what he did? Do you?" she asked, waving her weapon of choice: the hydro spanner in the air. Lorne made several cutting gestures with his hand, throwing his eyes towards the group of authorities trying to get her to notice - It didn't work. "He's touching everything with his grubby little hands and telling me how I should have done this and should have done that," she growled, putting a dint into the bulkhead with the force of her throw, the hydro spanner dropping to the floor with a clang.

"That's because you should have," McKay argued as he marched in after her, he wasn't as oblivious as Laura was though and he froze in horror, his face turning a sickly white as he saw the guards standing there. His mouth opened and closed a few times before he squeaked, "whatever they did I wasn't involved. It was all them." He pointed at the two Liberty crew members. Laura twisted her head around to gawk at him.

"What the hell are you rambling about now?" she growled before following his gaze to the spectators in uniform. Laura froze, took a deep breath and glared at Lorne.

"The Imperium decided to pay us a visit," he explained, desperately trying to hide his amusement as he placed his hands behind his back and rocked on his heals.

"Just you wait," she muttered for Lorne's ears only before addressing the guards, "Everything you just heard was completely untrue," she lied smoothly, laughing as if it was a joke. "I love the little man really, he's annoying as hell but I find that to be an endearing quality." She smiled sweetly and patted Rodney's shoulder, making the man turn even paler. Lorne's eyes widened at how innocent she looked - the little brat could get away with anything with that expression. "Well it seems I interrupted your conversation with Lorne here," She smiled sweetly, "So I'll just leave you to it."

"That won't be necessary," the female captain told them causing Laura to stop her escape attempt. "I need to speak with all of you, including your Captain. I would appreciate it if you would call him down here. The matter is of great importance."

Laura and Lorne exchanged a look as McKay stepped forward.

"Look there has been a misunderstanding here," he began," I'm not a part of their crew. I mean why would someone of my intelligence convert with people like them. It's…it's…"

The Captain forestalled his rant by raising her hand. "You being here has saved me a trip," she explained vaguely."

"What? Why? You can't just…" The woman narrowed her eyes and McKay instantly shut up. Laura stared in astonishment.

"You are really going to have to teach me how to do that," she exclaimed as her stare parried between the guard and the self proclaimed genius, who remained slack jawed. The corners of the woman's mouth twitched slightly before she regained her composure.

"Your Captain please," she suggested, though it was more like an order.

"Right," Lorne said, rummaging through his pocket and pulling out the comm device. "Umm…Sheppard, I think you'd better get down here."

-----

John had marched into the cargo bay and would have given Lorne a piece of his mind if he, the rest of his crew and the spluttering man who he didn't have a clue about weren't promptly marched out of his ship, through the streets, into a transport and transported to the luxurious office he was seated in now. The walls were standard Imperium style, the sterile white colour making John feel as if he was in a hospital. The windows on the wall behind the elevated desk stretched from floor to ceiling, the glass tinted preventing anyone from witnessing the view beyond.

"If you will just wait a moment," the guard requested. She moved over to another door that was partially hidden by a book shelf at the side of the desk, pressed what was no doubt a bell of some sort and disappeared behind it. He had tried talking to the woman several times on the journey here, just to glean some kind of information about why they were being apprehended - they hadn't been arrested but John sensed that he wouldn't be allowed to just leave if he wanted to, especially if the heavily armed guards that they left outside had anything to say about it. The only he had found out was her rank and name: Captain Teyla Emmagan.

Licking both of his lips he turned to face his crew and Mr. Nameless who were sitting on the chairs behind him. Laura was lounging back in her chair like she usually did throwing the occasional glare in both men's directions - nothing ever seemed to phase her. Lorne was eyeing his filthy clothing in disgust picking at his top with his fingers and shaking the muck onto the previously clean carpet, he looked up, noticed John shaking his head at him and grinned. Mr. Nameless seemed to be hyperventilating, chanting 'oh my God, I'm going to die' over and over, not helping the situation at all.

"Don't you think you're over exaggerating just a little bit?" John questioned whilst raising both of his eyebrows.

"What?!" Rodney snapped, his head quickly looking up from the ground. "Over exaggerating. You think I'm over exaggerating. Have you heard what happens to people in this office?" He ranted heatedly, talking so quickly that he even caught Laura and Lorne's attention.

"Whoa calm down McKay," Lorne suggested, "if you keep talking like that you'll faint or something."

"He's right Mr. McKay, you shouldn't worry so much," said a gravely voice from behind them causing everyone to spin in its direction. A battle hardened man stood at the doorway where Captain Emmagan had gone through, hiding the petite woman with his much larger frame. Confidently he walked over to his desk, sitting behind it and gesturing for Teyla to stand at his side.

"And you would be?" John maneuvered.

"Councilor Kolya," he told them with a nod, "of the Genii."

John glanced at Lorne who shrugged. "And we're here because…"

"You are here because I have a mission for you," Kolya told them sternly.

"What if we don't want to take a mission?" John asked. He really didn't want to work for the Imperium, but he was curious as to why Kolya wanted them.

"What you want doesn't factor into this Captain." He replied in a low tone. He waved his hand over a panel on the surface of his desk and light immediately beamed from it, spreading out and forming a 3D image of a star chart. John leaned forward, peering at the chart intently.

"The border," John announced knowingly, getting a niggling feeling in the back of his mind.

"That's right Captain. It seems that you and your crew," his eyes flickered to them briefly, " are the only ones known to have traveled through that area and come out alive. Tell me, how did you do that?"

"Luck," Laura, Lorne and John intoned as one.

"Um…excuse me," McKay interrupted, "but what has this got to do with me? I've never even been off of Earth before, never mind to the border or what ever it is." he started gesturing madly with his hands and John heard the Councilor sigh tiredly.

"I was just getting to that part, Mr. McKay." He turned to the female Captain and gestured for her to take over.

"A scientist by the name of Relling's once lived at the border, in a space station of sorts," she explained, walking over to stand in front of the group with her arms behind her back. "He was building a power source."

"Yes, yes, yes," Rodney butted in impatiently, "he was experimenting with using vacuum energy. Anyone who keeps up with Science today knows that." Teyla glared at the man before continuing.

"What you might not know is that he succeeded."

Rodney snorted, "It's not possible. The materials and staff needed for that type of research is phenomenal. He would have to have had constant supplies being brought to him."

"And he couldn't have had that at the border. The Wraith would have raided anything headed that way," Laura finished. She remembered this part of space well; she did after all meet John and Lorne there.

"The station was able to move," Teyla supplied before pointing to a blinking dot on the image. "It started out here, where we were able to keep up with the supply runs but for some reason we lost contact with him and his group."

"Wraith?" John asked as he rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"Possibly," Teyla sighed. "By the time we were able to do something about it the station had already drifted into the border territory." She took her place back by the Councilors side.

"I want you to retrieve the device," Kolya informed them, standing up from his chair and bracing his hands against the desk surface.

"Are you crazy?" Laura exclaimed, pushing herself out of the chair angrily. Lorne stood up quickly and grabbed her arm, stopping her from charging at the desk. He whispered something for her ears only and after a few tense moments she fell back, retaking her seat even though she still glared in Kolya's direction, holding her posture stiffly.

"She's right," Lorne agreed, meeting John's eyes. "Going there," he pointed sharply at the image, "is suicide."

"You do not have a choice in the matter," Kolya stated evenly, meeting each persons eyes. "Mr. McKay you will accompany them as your expertise is needed." McKay gasped and floundered wordlessly as Kolya stared at him. "Your reputation precedes you. The Imperium has been well aware of your…talents for some time."

"I will also be accompanying you," Teyla told them after gaining a nod of approval from her boss.

"And what's in it for us?" John voiced icily, his eyes cold as they met the councilors. Kolya smirked cruelly.

"You'll stay out of detention and the Imperium laws you have _violated_ will be ignored," Kolya replied smoothly. "You will leave tomorrow. All the information you need will be provided by Captain Emmagan." He noticed John's defiant look and gazed straight at him, their dislike of each other plainly written in their eyes. "Is that understood, _Captain_ Sheppard?"

"Oh yeah, I got it," he answered, ice hanging from every word. Kolya smiled spitefully before standing up and leaving the office.

The group sat in silence. Each person trying to digest what had just taken place. Lorne decided to break the mood.

"Charming fellow," he drawled, drawing a tight laugh from Laura despite the situation.

"I can't believe this is happening to me. I can't believe this," McKay squeaked before looking at at Laura accusingly. "This is all your fault."

"Oh really, well you're the one who wanted to look around my engines, you're the one who suggested it in the first place, and she said they would have gotten you anyway Moron, so why don't you shut up for once before I make you eat the panel you complained about earlier," Laura argued, loosing her temper with the stress of the situation.

"I apologies for the manner…" Teyla began only to be cut off by John.

"Enough," he snapped, "and that goes for everyone. I don't want any arguing, I don't want any apologies. I just want to get this over with a.s.a.p. so that we can get on with our life's and get as far away from this miserable little planet as possible."

The group went silent and John nodded in appreciation. After a few moments of silence Teyla finally transported them all back to the ship telling them that she would be ready to depart at zero six thirty, Earth time. It was going to be a long mission.

Tbc…

So...like? Hate? More? If you review I'll give you cookies...of the Sparky kind -grins-

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	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note: Sorry for the delay guys. I hope you can forgive me and I hope this makes up for it :smiles:**

alexis - Thank you so much for your support and lovely comments. I hope you like this chapter as well:smiles:

Izzles - Hehe...I like taunting you, it's so much fun :wicked grin: Hope you like this chappy :huggles:

belanna30 - I don't know why I don't like it either, lol. I sometimes get incredibly frustrated with things if it doesn't work out the way I planned so that might be why :shrugs: I can tell you when Lizzie runs into the crew...:whispers: the net chapter :grin: I can't tell you how, why and where though, that would ruin it...hehe.

StarSkimmer - Oooo thank you. I love AU's too, it's a shame there isn't more of them out there. Of course Ronon will be in it and you will be seeing him soon...I promise :grins:

Hannah554 - I'm glad you stopped me deleting it too, I would have regretted it :hugs: I hope the wait was worth while! Thanks for the review!

KariHermione - Thanks for the review! As for Teyla's story line, lets just say she's going to have it tough for a while...I hope you like this chappy!

fyd818 - I LOVE LORNE! I can't not put him in my stories, he's just so fun and easy to play with, mainly because we see so little of him. I find him so easy to write for and I'm glad that you, and others, like the way I've done it - makes my day :smiles:I'm glad you enjoyed the flashback. I love writing them because I don't have to build anything up, I'm just straight into Sparky goodness :squees: You'll find out more about Lizzie later on. Kolya is like the best baddie ever! I love to hate him and can't resist putting him in my fics...hehe. Hope you like this one :hugs:

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It was manic. The early morning hustle and bustle spread across the street like wild fire as people rushed about the docks market place, pushing and shoving anything in their path and hurling abuse at anyone who wasn't quick enough. Laura stood on the ramp overlooking it all, annoyance written clearly on her features as Lorne's humming broke through the standard traffic noise. She eyed him over her shoulder.

"Lorne, if you break into song I'm not going be held accountable for my actions," she threatened, causing him to stop rummaging through McKay's luggage which had taken over the cargo bay and seemed to actually grow every time it was looked at.

"Come on, I know you love my singing voice really," he retorted, pulling out a strange mechanical, toy-like thing from a bag. He yelped and threw the contraption to the ground when it zapped him, stamping on the thing as Laura doubled over in laughter. "What the hell was that?!" He exclaimed, sucking on his now tingling finger.

"It's his security," she gasped between laughter. "He puts them in all of his bags to stop people like you from going through his stuff." She finally calmed down and picked up Lorne's attacker; it was a small, circular device that was illuminated in blue light, from the tiny lights that dotted across the surface.

"How'd you know?" he mumbled.

"He bragged about it of course," she told him with an eye roll, pushing her hair behind her ears from where it had escaped her ponytail. She brought the little machine closer to her eyes and decided there and then that she was going to keep it - it was bound to have a use at some point or another and if McKay started complaining about it, she could just blame Lorne. A devious grin formed on her face.

"Oh no you don't," Lorne said commandingly, yanking Laura's new keepsake from her hands, throwing it in the air and then holding it behind his back. Laura glared at him; he glared back and a war of wills began, that was until Laura cheated, kicking him in his shin so that he doubled over- he was such a wimp at times - and she reclaimed her new found toy.

"You. Don't. Play. Fair!" He whined, rubbing his injured shin and scowling when her triumphant smirk became too smug for his liking. She attempted to walk away but Lorne was too quick for her, wrestling her to the ground as she desperately tried to cling onto the device, unfortunately for her Lorne was one of the few people to know that she was ticklish - she stopped him with a look.

"Marcus Evan Lorne, if you value your life, you won't even dare!" She growled, blue fire spitting from her eyes.

"Turnabout is fair play," he laughed but before he could carry out his plan a shrill voice cut through the playful atmosphere of the room.

"Oh my God, who went through my bag?" McKay squealed, pointing at the bag in question. He turned to glare at the duo on the floor, a look of disgust forming on his face. "What are you two brainless grease monkeys doing now?"

"McKay, why don't you and your ego go find someone else to annoy," Laura muttered, accepting the hand Lorne offered to help her up. Now that the two of them had a common foe to focus on their little battle was forgotten - for the time being at least. She dusted off her clothes and sneakily placed the stolen tech in her pocket.

"Gee I don't know, maybe it's because I have been ordered - by the most powerful people in the known universe - to accompany you feeble minded space bandits, on this trip of doom."

Lorne was out of McKay's eye line and preceded to mimic the disgruntled, self proclaimed genius; pulling faces behind his back that had Laura in hysterics, which only infuriated Rodney more. His face reddened in anger and he completely forgot about his tampered with luggage as he stormed towards his bag, snatched it from the ground and marched out of the cargo bay. A baffled looking John strolled in just after, eyeing the retreating scientist warily before staring suspiciously at his two mischief makers.

"Whatever you did, I don't want to know," he told them after a moment, a smirk briefly forming on his mouth. Laura smiled brightly as Lorne walked behind her, his arms carrying a box filled with different bits of tech - Laura didn't even feel it when his hand slipped into her pocket and came back out with McKay's device before he carried on with his duty - sorting out the cargo bay.

"When does Miss rules and regulations get here then?" Lorne questioned after he had put the box down.

"I'm already here," answered a voice from the doorway leading out into the landing bay. Laura smothered her laughter as Lorne's head snapped around to face the object of his discussion. Her tone had an edge to it that seemed to say 'I heard that' but her face was as impassive as usual.

"Captain Emmagan, what a pleasure it is to see you again," John greeted sarcastically, saluting in her direction. All she carried was a small over the shoulder bag, big enough to fit in a couple of outfits, and the weapon placed at her holster. John didn't doubt for a second that she carried more then what they could see - she was Imperium after all.

"Likewise Captain," she returned. She tried to continue but John cut her off.

"Laura why don't you show our…guest to her room," he ordered.

"What, why do I have to?" she complained, turning around to greet and glare at thin air as John made a hasty retreat, Lorne showing his true alliance as he quickly followed after his long time friend. "Oh this is just fantastic," she muttered, before smiling in the other woman's direction - she didn't seem so bad, plus Laura could use a female friend, she was outnumbered by males already. "Alright then, if you'll follow me," she suggested.

"Thank you," Teyla said gratefully, relieved to find someone who didn't have an obvious grudge against her because of her uniform.

"No problem," Laura replied, waving her comment away as she headed towards the exit. "I'm Laura by the way, I don't think we've been properly introduced. It seems that both of our bosses, friends…or whatever…don't have manners."

"Well, they are men," Emmagan joked, causing Laura to snort with laughter.

"Hear, hear," Laura agreed. "I think you and me are going to get along just fine Captain."

"Please, call me Teyla," she told her before a quiet cough drew both the girls attention. Laura almost forgot to breathe. A man with golden brown hair and eyes as deep and blue as the ocean greeted her, his boyishly handsome face smiling kindly in her direction - she nearly melted. "It looks like our bosses aren't the only ones who have forgotten their manners," Teyla stated. "Laura I'd like you to meet Carson Beckett, he's the Doctor assigned to this mission."

"Nice to meet you Lass," he greeted warmly, his smile lighting up all of his features, especially his eyes as he offered her his hand.

"Hi," she breathed, getting lost in his eyes. His skin flashed a tint of red and Laura realised that she hadn't let go of his hand; she dropped it quickly and bit her lip sheepishly before grinning at him and turning back to Teyla. Teyla gazed at them in amusement.

"I didn't know what to expect when we get to the station so I thought we should be prepared for any circumstance," Teyla explained. "I hope it's not a problem.

"Problem? No…no, of course not," Laura reassured. "I'm sure the Captain won't mind at all; in fact I'll get McKay to deliver the news personally." Teyla laughed slightly.

"What does ya Captain have against the Imperium?" Carson asked, genuinely curious about the barely concealed hostility he had witnessed since he arrived on the ship.

"Well…that's a long story and personally I would rather talk to you about more…personal things than that," she flirted, enjoying the new blush that formed on his face. He didn't get a chance to respond though, as they arrived at the room.

-----

"So…are you going to tell me what's bothering you?" Lorne asked as he hurried to keep up with John as he sped through the corridors towards his room. "Apart from the whole 'Imperium taking over your ship thing' that is."

"Nothing's bothering me," John defended nonchalantly.

"Of course there isn't," Lorne drawled, "That black storm cloud has just been following you around for the past few days because of your charm."

An irate Rodney McKay marched straight into them, his arms gesturing madly as his face flamed, putting an end to the conversation.

"Give me it back!" He demanded, glaring at Lorne. John pulled a face at the man and side stepped him, continuing his walk down the corridor, until McKay stopped him. "Tell him to give me it back!"

"Give you what back?" John asked, his irritation clear. Why couldn't people just leave him alone; all he wanted to do was get back to his cabin and wallow in privacy.

"He," McKay pointed angrily at Lorne, "stole a piece of tech from my bag." Lorne's face remained the picture of innocence, apart from the troublesome gleam that appeared in his eyes.

"You mean the small circular thing that zaps anyone in arms reach?" Lorne questioned, smirking at John's questioning look.

"Yes! Give me it back!"

"Can't," Lorne told him dismissively, walking around Rodney and catching up to John. They both started walking again as the red in Rodney's face increased - a lot.

"What do you mean you can't?!" He whined. "It's mine!"

"Oh I know," Lorne replied, "but I don't have it, Laura does."

"But…she told me…argh," McKay spluttered before turning on his heel and marching back the way he came. John and Lorne watched him go, both wearing similar expressions on their faces, before they turned and continued their walk. Lorne pulled out the device they were arguing about and held it so that John could see it clearly; Laura had obviously realized that he had taken it back and decided to get him back by sending McKay his way - he smirked, two could play at that game. John shook his head.

"You two are worse then kids," he muttered, though amusement sparked within his eyes. He quickly opened his cabin door and walked though it, ignoring Lorne's shout of protest, as the door stopped the last few words from reaching his ears.

With a sigh he pulled his jacket off and tossed it into the cleaner that sat in the corner, quickly doing the same with his shirt before he shut the panel and started the machine, the distinctive whir confirming that it was working. He stretched and collapsed onto his rack, his eyes automatically gazing at the ceiling. A shard of light danced across his view and he frowned, gazing down at the cause and pulling at the chain around his neck, bringing the tag that it held closer to his eyes, the metal shining still shining from the light. His eyes refused to stay open for long though.

_A shirt flew across the room, hitting the wall with a thud before settling on the floor and being covered by a pair of trousers that suffered the same fate._

"_What're you doing?" John asked, watching her in amusement as she paced around the room, her hands brushing through her hair in frustration. At the sound of his voice she froze and turned to face him, placing her hands on her hips as she narrowed her eyes._

"_Where are they?" She questioned in a growl which only caused John's grin to widen even as he tried to look innocent. Normally he would be reluctant to antagonise her more, but she was standing there, glaring at him with her hands on her hips, wearing nothing but her underwear and a chain around her neck - damn; she was hot when she was mad._

"_I don't know what your talking about." he replied with a shrug. _

"_Don't you lie to me John Sheppard," she scolded as she walked towards him. "You were the one who took them off, so you should know where you put them."_

"_I can't remember." When her eyebrow reached her hairline he added, "What?! You were distracting me." She smiled and shook her head before glancing at him again, seriousness present in her emerald eyes._

"_John, I really need to go," she told him, receiving only a pout in return. Her face softened and she crawled onto the bed, giving him a quick peck on the lips and distracting him just enough so that she could yank her top out from beneath his pillow._

"_Ah ah," she cheered triumphantly. Her smug expression faded though when John quickly grabbed it back, holding it out of her reach as she tried to snatch it back - he was quicker; he tossed the top across the room, pulling her down on top of him instead and silencing her with a kiss. She attempted - really, she did - to push him away but ended up returning it, giving in with a groan. _

_When they finally parted for breath, her eyes met his smug ones and she glared._

"_You are entirely too good at that," she moaned breathlessly. He smirked. "I still have to go though," she told him sternly, pushing herself up and padding across the room, retrieving her clothes and putting them on._

"_Do you have to," he whined, using the most adorable pleading puppy expression he had - she rolled her eyes._

"_You know I do," she retorted with a small smile, moving so that she was sitting on the edge of the bed. John took advantage of the situation and rested his cheek against her thigh, sighing and closing his eyes._

"_Fine," he grumbled, sighing again when her hand stroked through his hair. He cracked his eyes open slightly and noticed the light flashing on the wall. He fingered one of the tags hanging from the chain around Beth's neck and stared at it sleepily. "What are these?"_

_Beth's hand automatically started fiddling with the necklace, pulling one of the tags across the chain. She pursed her lips in thought as a look of sadness settled across her features. John squeezed her hand and she smiled, even though it was small._

"_Um…they were my Father's. I never really go anywhere without them," she explained. "He left them to me when he died." She bowed her head so that a stray curl fell forward, hiding her face from his view._

"_I'm sorry," he told her honestly, moving the curl back behind her ear. He gently cupped her cheek and turned her face towards him. Her eyes were glittering with unshed tears, but she refused to let them fall - she smiled sadly instead._

"_Not your fault," she replied. "My Father was not in the best occupation - at that time anyway." She held the tag up and John could clearly see the circular logo imprinted on the surface with numbers etched across the middle, a look of understanding came across his face and she nodded in response. _

"_He was part of the rebellion," John stated, referring to the group of military and civilian people who had thought against the forming of the Imperium. It was an event carved in history and one that was taught to every child in Imperium territory. From what he remembered it was quite a fight, with losses on both sides - unfortunately the Imperium had more supplies, more men and more power and eventually overwhelmed the rebellion members, putting an end to their protest and forming the Imperium. That was over twenty years ago, he was only ten, so he knew she would have been younger at the time of her Fathers death._

"_Yeah," she nodded and he could tell she was proud. She grinned wickedly. "Of course if you tell anyone, I will have to kill you, and the person you tell, and anyone else who happens to be in the area…just in case." _

_John laughed, "I'm sure I can be persuaded to keep quiet, though I don't think you could hurt a fly…you're way too nice." _

"_You'd be surprised," she teased, leaning in so that her lips were mere inches from his before pushing him away from her and jumping up. He mock scowled at her, receiving a grin in return._

"_I'll see you later," she said just as the door closed. _

The door opened and John instantly jolted awake, hitting his head in the process. He grimaced in pain and rubbed at the bump, glaring at his living alarm clock. Laura's sheepish grin and laughing eyes came into view.

"Sorry Boss, but you weren't answering…the comm or the door," she explained. "You know, you're adorable when your asleep, you have this cute little expression on your…" A pillow hit her face, followed quickly by another one. She gasped in shock and doubled over in laughter.

"Alright, alright," she pleaded, holding her hands out. John glared for a few moments before groaning and falling back, covering his head with the cover.

"What do you want?"

"Just thought you'd like to know that both of our Imperium guests are settled in," she told him, emphasizing 'both'. His eyes peeked over the edge of the cover, his eyebrow reaching his hairline.

"Both?!" He muttered, confusion present in his tone.

"Yep," she answered happily, jumping on the edge of the bed and swinging her legs back and forth. John was about to complain but though better of it, instead he gestured for her to continue.

"Captain Emmagan and…"

Lorne chose that moment to stroll in like he owned the place and leaned against the wall, on the opposite side of Laura and John.

"Laura's new boyfriend, Carson," he teased, catching the pillow that Laura threw at him and hit her with it.

"I didn't realise I left 'welcome all' sign on the door," John grumbled sarcastically as he sat up and threw his legs over the side. He grabbed his stolen pillow from Lorne as Laura wolf whistled.

"Nice," she teased, glancing at his chest. John just laughed and shook his head. "And he is not my boyfriend," she stated, pointing threateningly at Lorne.

"Yeah…right," Lorne teased as he turned to John. "She made goog-ally eyes and everything."

"Must be serious," John muttered through the shirt that he pulled over his head, smirking in Laura's direction when his head was free.

"I hate you all, you know that right," she growled, even though she couldn't prevent the smile she wore.

"We're gonna have to give Carson the talk, aren't we?" John said, folding his arms over his chest and Lorne nodded.

"Definitely," the pilot agreed, following John out of the door as Laura trailed behind them, her face incredulous. She tried to protest but they ignored her. "This time I get to be the psychotic older brother, you can be the reasonable one…last time you got way to carried away with the gun. Poor guy almost peed himself."

"Last time?!" Laura exclaimed. "Gun?!"

"Fine," John agreed, shaking Lorne's offered hand before they both waked off, leaving Laura alone to absorb everything. She snapped out of her stupor in time to see their retreating backs, jogging down the corridor.

"Guys!" she yelled, narrowing her eyes. Releasing something that sounded like a growl she sprinted after them, their laughter echoing in front of her as they tried to escape.

-----

Earth stared back at them from the view screen, becoming a distant memory as Lorne activated the engines and manoeuvred the Liberty out of orbit. Laura sat to his right, in the co-pilots seat, chewing on a ration bar and pulling mocking faces at McKay who sat in the back left hand corner, his arms folded across his chest as he huffed angrily and glared at the mischievous blond, eyeing the bar longingly. The two Imperium members sat stood to the right, Teyla occasionally looking over Laura's shoulder at the readings displayed and talking quietly to Carson, who smiled shyly at Laura every time she looked in his direction.

John watched it all; the stars streaking passed the view port, his team mates and his unexpected guests with a feeling of dread in his stomach. For some reason, one he couldn't quite explain, his instincts where screaming at him, telling him that this was an incredibly bad idea. He spared a glance at Captain Emmagan, receiving a respectful nod in return and gained a new level of respect for the woman; she hadn't tried to take over in any way and for that he was grateful - not too mention relieved. He still wasn't sure what to expect, but the sinking feeling in his stomach told him that it was going to be interesting.

"Lorne," he stated, his voice cutting through the silence and gaining everyone's attention. "Start the jump." And with that the ship lurched, appearing just a click away from the border. The mission had begun.

Tbc…


End file.
